Wednesday, January 26, 2011

Why even Steelers fans love Mike McCarthy

This past Monday Mike McCarthy met with the media and had this to say about his home town (emphasis added):

"Pittsburgh is obviously a big part of who I am. And my family's still back there. This is going to be a very unique experience for everybody. Half my coaching staff has either played in Pittsburgh or is from Pittsburgh. So there will be a lot of storylines from that perspective."

"But one thing we talked about as a coaching staff, and will continue to talk about as a football team, you know we're not preparing for Super Bowl [XLV]. We're preparing to beat the Pittsburgh Steelers in a football game and that's what we need to stay focused on."

"They're an excellent football team. Obviously. They've had a lot of success. They're a veteran team and an experienced team. This is not their first go‑around. They’ve definitely been through this experience before where we have not."

"And we understand that. But we're going to stick to our approach. And that's the way we're going to face it. And I think the fact that I'm from back there, it's neat. I'm a Pittsburgh Steeler fan growing up. They're my second favorite team."

"I thought it was awesome to have Terry Bradshaw present the Halas Trophy in the locker room. Personally I got a charge out of that. Terry was obviously the quarterback in my youth during the '70s when they won the four Super Bowls. But trust me I'm a Green Bay Packer and it's important for us to bring the Lombardi Trophy back home."